 CHAPTER XI. It is hard for a land whose king is a child, and so England did not have good times when the son of the black prince came to the throne. For there were three sons of the old king Edward, who each one sought to have the rule in his own hands, and they did not care for the good of the young king or for their land. The poor were ground down and were slaves to the rich. They had to pay a tax on this and a tax on that, till they had scarce food to eat. A new tax by the name of the pole tax was made in King Richard's reign, and the folks rose in a rage at it. One of them, by the name of Watt Tyler, struck down a rude man who came to his house to get this pole tax, and the blow was the cause of his death. The folks in the town came with sticks and scythes and flails and took the part of Watt Tyler. He told them to come with him and march up to London and tell the king of their wrongs. As they went more and more folks came to join them, and it was a wild throng by the time they got to London. They lay in the grass all night round the tower, and when day came they said they must speak to the king. He came in his barge to see them, but his friends, who had seen the strange horde, had fear for his life and took him back. The next day the king rode on his horse in the midst of the mob to try and find out the truth. While Watt Tyler spoke to the king he laid his hand on him, and someone thought that he meant to stab him. So the Lord Mayor rode up to him and dealt the poor man such a blow that he fell from his horse, and someone thrust him through with the sword. The mob did not seem to know what to do. When the king rode forth and said, Good folks, have you lost the man who led you? That man was false. I, your king, will lead you. Then he rode at their head out into the fields, and they were told to state their wrongs, and he said he would do what he could for them, so they went home. Richard did seem to wish to give up some of the laws that were so hard on the poor, but his lords would not let him. He was a mere youth, and he was fond of feasts and fine clothes, and glad to let all things go, and the world wag as it might if he had a good time. He said his fun did not cost as much as King Edward's wars, so he made peace with France, that he might have funds for his fine clothes and his feasts and gifts for his friends. Thus England lost its fame, while the king spent the gold of the lands for gems and rings and fur robes in which knights were dressed to ride and tilt in shamfights. The Duke of Gloucester was glad to find fault with the king and to stir up the English to do so, and Richard grew to fear him, so he had men to seize the Duke and take him to Calais. In three days news came that he was dead, and no one knew if he had been put to death or if grief and rage had brought on a fit. John, Duke of Lancaster, and son, too, of King Edward III, was an old man and did his best to be friends with the king. But he had a son by the name of Henry, who was a fine brave young man, and Richard had great fear of him, so he made some charge and sent him out of the land to stay ten years. Then when the Duke of Lancaster was dead, the king took all his lands and wealth, to which, of course, he had no right. Henry, the Duke's son, would not bear this, and he knew that most of the English thought it was not fair, so he went at once to England, and as soon as he set foot on its shore the folks came in crowds to join him. For by this time they had not but hate for their king. Henry thought there was a chance to get the crown, and he made haste back from Ireland, but he found no friends save a false one, who gave him up to his foes. They took him to London and made him say in the face of Parliament that his rule had been so bad he was not fit to be king. Then they made him swear that he would give up the throne to Henry of Lancaster. He was sent to Pontifract Castle, and kept there all the rest of his life, and we do not hear of him more. Henry IV did not find a smooth path for his feet when he did get the crown. The Welsh took up arms for Richard, and the Scotch gave him no rest. The Earl of Northumberland, who was Richard's false friend, thought the king could not do too much for him for his help to win the crown. This Earl had a fine son who was so rash and brave that he had the name of Harry Hotspur. This young man led the troops on the Scotch and beat them and took hosts of them. The king sent to have these Scotchmen brought to London, which put the proud young Hotspur in a rage, so he went off to Wales and took his men with him. There they found more to join them, and they got a large force to fight King Henry. The Prince of Wales, whose name was Henry II, was a brave, fine youth, and fought well. King Henry won the day, and Hotspur got his death in this fight. But the Welsh were not put down, and the king had no peace. He did not know whom to trust, for he met plots on all sides. Friends were not true to him, so at last he grew to think that all men were his foes. In time he would not trust his son, Prince Howe, and put slights on him of all sorts. He grew old ere his time, and was ill and had fits. His last charge was to his son Henry. He said the Prince should keep up the war with France, or the English would not let him rest on his throne. The death of Henry IV was in 1413. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. History of England in Words of One Syllable by Helen W. Pearson. Chapter 12 Henry V of Monmouth The young Prince Howe had been a gay youth and fond of all sorts of pranks, but it seems clear that most of them were mere fun and did no harm. When he was made a king he gave up all his wild friends, and his aim was to lead a new life in a grave and wise way. Still he thought it right to make war on France. The poor old king of France was mad, and his wife was bad, and the land was in a sad state. Fights went on till the streets of Paris ran red with blood. Henry thought he could set things to rights, and he got troops and went into Normandy. There he sent out a call to the folks to own him as their true king, and then he said he would let no harm come to them. He laid siege to half-floor, both by sea and land, for five weeks, at which time the town gave up. He let the folks go out of it with part of their clothes and five pants each. All the rest that they had he took for his own men, yet the troops were still in want of much. But the king said he would not go back till he had struck a great blow. So he went on with his small force on the road to Calais, when he came to a stream by the name of Saum. He could not cross, for there was a fort at the fort. As he went on the right bank to look for a place to cross, the French made a move on the left bank to watch him. They laid and wait to fight when the English tried to cross. In the end the English did cross the stream. The French then sent word to King Henry to know by which road he meant to go. By the road that will take me straight to Calais, said the king, and he sent them off with a gift of a sum of gold, for he sought to make friends as far as he could. The English went on till they saw the French, and then the king gave the word for them to form the line for the fight. The French had six men to one of the English. Most of them were of high rank and the first blood in the land. It had been their way to laugh at the bows of the English as things not fit for the hands of men of birth. The French had spent the night in feasts and mirth, but the English sought God's help, while the king rode from tent to tent to see that each man was in this place. He rode on a grey horse and wore a gold crown on his head, and on his clothes were wrought the arms of England and France. He told his men that he had made up his mind to win the fight or die, and that England would not have to pay a price to the French for him. He said that he did not wish for one more man, as the less their force the more great would be their fame when they won the day. As the French did not make a move, he sent off two men, one to lie in a wood to the left of the French, and the one to set fire to a house at the back of them. Then the English rose up with a great shout and fell upon the French. Each bowman had a great stake with a strong tip. This stake they thrust into the ground, shot off their darts and fell back, so when the grand French knights rode up to the fray such a storm of darts fell on them that they had to break and turn. Horse and man would fall and roll in the dust. Those who made to get up and strive to charge the bowman found the ground so much of a bog that they could not keep their feet, and the English cut them to bits, roots and branch. Then the dense mass of French troops whose arms were of great weight sank knee-deep in the mire, while the light English troops were as fresh and strong as if they fought on a floor. And now the fight grew more fierce and the Duke of Clarence fell. The French came round him in a mass, but King Henry fought them off. Then came a band of French knights with a lord at their head, who had sworn to kill or take the English king. One of them struck him such a blow with an axe that it made him reel and ball on his knees, but his men made haste to close round him and they slew the whole band so that French lord could not keep his oath. The French Duke of Alicomne saw this and he made a fierce charge and cut his way up to the flag of England to take it. He beat down the Duke of York, who stood near, but when the king came to his aid he struck off a piece of the crown he wore. But that was the last blow he made, whereas he told the king who he was he fell dead, struck by a score of darts. This death brought the fight to an end, the third part of the French force which had not yet struck a blow, broke and fled. Then it was known that the English had won the fight. The loss was great on the French side, three dukes were slain in seven counts and hosts of knights and men of berth laid dead on the field. This was known as the fight of Agincourt. When the king went home once more he was met with cheers and men made a plunge in the waves here he could reach the shore to bear him to land on their backs. Crowds came from each town through which he went and they hung rich stuffs out and wreaths and made the founts run with wine as the great field of Agincourt had run with blood. King Henry kept hearth floor and took a great part of Normandy, he took to the great town of Royal, which stood out a siege of a year. This made the French think it would be a good plan to talk of terms of peace, so they met the English on a plane by the Seine. The poor mad king could not be there but the queen came and with her the fair young princes Catherine, and King Henry saw her for the first time and his heart was won. And so in the end Henry made peace on the terms that he should have the princess Catherine for his wife and that he should be made regent of France for the rest of the mad king's life and had the throne at his death. And so peace came once more and the poor French folk were glad, though they were in such want of food that some of them fell dead in the streets of Paris. And now with a fair wife to cheer him and his foes dead and in time a son born to bring him new joy, all was bright for the king. But his health was worn out by this time and he grew quite weak and ill. He sent for his friends when he knew he was to die and gave his son to their charge. Then he told the priests to chant a song for him and ere it was done his last breath was drawn. He had been a kind and wise king and he was most dear to the hearts of all Englishmen. There was great grief at his death. It was in the prime of life and so brave that his mere name kept his foes in check. He had seen that the laws were put in force for the good of all and more than this he had sought to keep the laws of God. His son Henry VI was Buddy Babe when he was made king of England and France. He was a meek and mild child, not as brave and strong and firm as his friends would have been glad to have found him. The war in France went on all the time for the Dauphin, the son of King Charles, had friends who fought for him as their real king. The Duke of Bedford held the rights of Henry and kept the lands that had been won in the north and southwest. But just at this time when the French were worn out with war, a strange thing came to pass to help them. In a small place in the wild hills of Lorraine there dwelt a young girl by the name of Joan of Arc. It had been her work as a child to tend sheep on the wild hills and she had heard ghost tales and talk of dreams and had seen strange shapes in the clouds and mists that swept by. The folk then in that part of the land had a child's faith in dreams and signs. So it was not strange to them to hear that the girl Joan had seen signs that saints had come to her with crowns on their heads and that a voice had said, Jean, now sent by God to go and help France. There is no doubt that Jean thought she heard and saw these things. These went on till she could not rest but went off to find the Dauphin. A French lord bought her a horse and a sword and gave her two squires to lead her. The voice had told Jean that she must wear a man's dress so she put one on and gird her sword to her side and bound spurs to her heels and rode on till she came to the place where the Dauphin was. It was strange that she knew how to pick him out at once from all the rest. She told them that there was an old, old sword in the church of St. Catherine at Freiburg and that it had five marks of a cross on it. And the voice had said that was the sword she must wear. Just at this time the English had laid siege to Orleans and there was small hope for the French. So the Dauphin was glad to catch at a straw. Joan told him God has sent her to get back his realm for him and that she would drive out the English from the soil of France and lead him to Rimes where the crown of France should be set on his head. When she spoke of the old sword no one had heard of it but when they saw it in the church it was found. So then the French put their trust in the maid and the English were full of fear for they thought she was a witch. Joan got on a horse once more and rode on and on till she came to Orleans. She rode now on a snow-white warhorse and her coat of arms shone in the sun. She bore a white flag in front of her with the words Hezu Maria Arne. And in this grand state at the head of a great mass of troops they bore food to the poor folks in Orleans. When those on the walls saw her there went up a shout, the maid has come. And this in the side of the maid at the head of their men made the French so brave and gave the English such doubts that their line of forts soon gave way. The French troops got in the town and Orleans was all their own once more. From that time Joan was known as the maid of Orleans. The English troops were still at the walls but the men had no heart to fight for they said it was of no use to strive with a witch. Still they held the bridge in some strong posts on the bridge and here the maid fought them for a whole day. She was once struck by an English dart in the neck and fell in the trench but she soon said that a voice spoke to her and the pain was gone and she rose to fight once more. When the English would seen her fall and thought her dead saw this they had strange fears. Some of them said that they saw Saint Michael on a white horse and that he fought for the French. So they lost heart and gave up the bridge. The next day they set their chain of forts on fire and left the place. They went with Lord Suffolk at their head to a town a few miles off but the maid of Orleans and her troops laid siege to them there and took him. As her white flag was seen to scale the walls Joan was struck on the head with a stone and once more she fell in a ditch. But her cry was on, on my friends. Fear not for the Lord will give them into our hands and so it was and from that time she won all in her way. She then told the Defant who had kept out of the way of the fights that he must go to Reims for his crown. The Defant made no haste to do this for Reims was a long way off and the English were still strong in the land through which the road lay. But at last he set forth with a large force and the maid of Orleans rode on her white war horse at their head and at last they came to Reims. She took all the towns in her way. In the great church of Reims it came to pass as she had said that the Defant had the crown put on his head with great pomp. The maid stood with her white flag at the side of the king in this great hour. Then she knelt to him and said with tears that what the voice had told her to do she had done and now all that she would ask for would be leave to go back to her dear home. The king said no but that he would raise all her kin to high rank and he went on to fix a sum of gold for her that she was to have each year. So the maid had to stay and go on and help the king and she did great things for him. She led a good pure life there is no doubt of that and off she would beg and pray the king to let her go. And once she took off her bright coat of arms and hung it up in a church and said she would wear it no more but the king won her back so she went on to her doom. At last in a fight the poor maid was struck once more and fell in a ditch. There she was left by the troops and had to crawl out as best she could. The chief men of the French did not like her. They felt shame that a girl should have done what they could not do. At last at the siege of Campagne the troops left her in a base way. She fought to the last till an Englishman tore her off her horse and then they put her in jail and they sought to make her out a witch. They would bring her to court and try to prove all sorts of things from her word and then take her back and shut her up once more. The poor young thing clung to life and at last said she would not wear a man's dress or fight more. Then they put her back in her cell and the voice came back to her. At last she said she must be burnt for a witch in the great square Rouen. There they brought her out and some priests and great men in the church sat in the crowd to look on. She was seen to hold the cross in her hands and all the fire and smoke and she was last heard to call on the name of Christ. So to the great shame of England and France the mate of Orleans was put to death. The king for whom she had won a throne did not lift a hand to save her. Not one in his court said a word for her. She had been true to them, brave and good, but they were false to her and it stands to their shame for all time to come. In the square where this vile deed was done their stance today brought in stone the form of the mate of Orleans. End of Chapter 12 Chapter 13 of History of England in Words of One Syllable This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org History of England in Words of One Syllable by Helen W. Pearson Chapter 13 The War of the Roses Henry VI of Windsor grew to be a weak man who had no strength of will. His wife Margaret of Anjou who was fierce and bold had things for the most part her way. The king was good and mild and would read and pray and praise God all the time while his queen rode roughshod as it were through the realm. He did one good thing for his land. He built Eaton College, a grand school which has done much for the minds of some of England's best men. In the meantime the folks grew to hate and fear the queen for they saw that her foes were put to death in all sorts of ways. At last they thought it would be best to take the crown from this weak king who was so ill at times that he did not speak for days. The one they thought of for King was the Duke of York. It is said some of the chief lords spoke of this one day as they took a walk in some grounds and one of them took the king's part. He said that though the king was weak his son Edward might be wise and that for his part he and his house would fight for King Henry. Then he told all who were of the same mind to do as he did and pluck a red rose and wear it in their caps to show that they meant to fight for the house of Lancaster. Each of the lords who were for the Duke of York took a white rose and put in his cap to show that they would be true to the house of York and so for a score and a half of years there was a sad war in England which took the name of the War of the Roses. The first fight was at St. Albans and those for York won. Then there was peace for a few years and the Duke of York had the rule but the queen found means to come back to England and to get a great force with which she fought the Duke's troops more than once and at last beat them. She cut off the Duke of York's head and stuck a mock crown on it and put it on one of the gates of York. Then a young son of the Duke met his death at the hands of one of Margaret's friends in such a way that the English grew to hate her still more but they felt she had a hard bad heart and crowds of them left her and went on the side of the house of York and they made the dead Duke's son Edward King so that for ten years there were two kings in England though one was poor Henry who had lost his wits by this time. Poor England was torn by wars from time to time and no one felt safe for laws were not kept. At one time King Henry had to hide in Scotland in woods in caves where he could get food and was like to die. Queen Margaret got more troops but the Yorkists beat her at Hexham and sent the King to the tower. The Queen and the young Prince got off to the woods. There they fell in the hands of thieves who took the Queen's rings in rich gems and then fought for who should have the most. While they fought the Queen stole off with her child by the hand but they met a new foe. They took their knees and told this man that this boy was the son of his king. The man took them in his care got them some food and found a way for them to get to the sea where they took a ship for Flanders. But though the Queen was gone and Henry in the tower there was no peace for England for those of the King's own house now set to work to stir up strife. These were the Duke of Clarence and Richard Duke of Glauchester and then there was the Earl of Warwick who fought now on this side now on that so that he got the name of Kingmaker once he brought poor Henry out and put him on the throne and Edward had to fly then Edward came back and Warwick was slain in a battle at Barnett and Henry was sent back to the tower. Queen Margaret came once more with her young son and all the force she could get there the Queen and young Prince Edward fell into the hands of the fierce Duke of York he said to the boy how didst thou dare come to England I came to try and get back the crown for King Henry said the youth King Edward struck him in the face and at that sign Clarence and Glauchester put an end to the poor boy's life then King Edward sent the Queen to the tower and at last the French King had ever set free Henry was found dead one day in his cell at the tower and it was thought he had been put to death so as all his foes were slain King Edward spent his time in feasts the Duke of Clarence who did not like the Queen or her kin was sent to the tower the near ties of blood did not make Edward spare him and he was put to death but the King did not live long the joys of peace there is not much good to be said of him save that he had a fine face and form and was brave but he was fierce to his foes and selfless is God he did not care for the folks of his land yet it was in this reign that books and print were first brought into England the art had been found out in Germany but no one had set up a press in England till one Cackston put one up in London and this reign too small guns were made that each man could bear in his arms so that there was a great change in the mode of war King Edward did not live to see much of these things for his feasts had done so much harm to his health that his life came to an end ere he was an old man King Edward left two sons who were boys at the time of his death the first born whose name was Edward was sent for at once now Richard Duke of Glauchester of whom you have heard who is known as Crookback from his odd form had a wish to have a crown but there were lords in England who had made up their mind that this should not be so when the young prince was brought to London he was put in the tower to keep him safe as the Duke said they did their best to watch him and keep him from harm but Richard of Glauchester was full of art he made out in some way to get the young Duke of York in his hands too and lodge him in the tower with the young king then he had all the lords and friends of the two boys meet him there as he said he would like to talk of the time when the crown might be set on the head of the young king in the face of all the folks of the land when he met the lords he came in a rage and said he had heard of plans to put him to death with some drug and said Lord Hastings one of young Edward's best friends he said in a fierce way what should be done with those who make such plans they should fare ill said Hastings if they had done so if thus thou speak to me with ifs said Glauchester with a roar by St. Paul I will not dine till thy head is off as soon as he had said this he struck his hand on the board he made a sign that they should take Hastings and they took him out into the court then they laid him down with his neck on a log of wood and cut off his head Richard went on from this time to put to death more of the young king's friends and the next thing he did was to get the folks to make him king as he knew he had no right to the throne he did not feel at ease till he had made way with the real heirs in the tower there was a good man in charge of the tower whose name was Sir Robert Brackenbury and it was found that no harm could come to the boys while he was there so he was sent out of the way then one of Glauchester's tools by the name of Terrell was sent to take his place he got two men to go into the boys room while they swept and make an end of them then they took them down a back stairs and put them in a chest with a great hole and threw a heap of stones on them in the course of years some men who were at work there found their bones in that place in the chest then they were put in an urn and laid in the tombs of kings at Westminster Abbey Richard Duke of Glauchester was made king by the name of Richard III he made some good laws and sought to gain the English heart but they could not like a baseman his reign was short and full of strife first there was the Duke of Buckingham who got some troops to help them make war on Richard but he lost his head then there was a man who was so near kin to Richard whose name was Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond Richard did not love the Earl of Richmond as he knew some thought he ought to be king Richmond wrote to his friends there if they would help them he would come and bring them in England might get rid of her bad king some of the best men in the land said they would join him so Richmond came and found men at the shore to greet him with joy Richard was brave though he was so base so he met Richmond at a place by the name of Bosworth Field and there was a great fight Richard was slain and his men fled from the field his crown was found on the ground ahead of Henry Tudor this fight put an end to the war of the roses Henry Tudor was soon wed to Elizabeth the child of Edward IV and so the white rose and the red rose were made to blend the king took for his badge a great rose half red half white you may see it now cut in the stone that marks his tomb in Westminster Henry VII was a stiff cold man although fond of show was mean in his ways the English had small love for him but they were worn out with war it was said that he was not kind to his wife there were two young men who set up claims to the throne in this reign the first said he was the son of the Duke of Clarence who had been put to death in the tower he found men to fight with him but he lost the day at Stoke and was thrown in jail his real name was Lambert and as the king found him to be a poor weak lad who had been made a tool in the hands of bad men he took him and kept him to train his hawks the next fraud was by a young man who said he was the Duke of York and that he had got off from the tower when the young king Edward was slain he too found men to take his part and the king of Scotland put such faith in his tale that he gave him a sweet young girl one of his own kin for his wife this man Perkin Warbeck by name took up his march with his troops through England and did much harm ere Henry could drive him out the last the king took him and he was hung at timeburn Henry sent for the wife of this man and took her to his queen who was kind to her and kept her at the court there was peace in England for years and the young men had time to read books which were by that time in print and learn things of use to them in this reign men first found their way to America they told of the new land the strange trees and birds and beasts and they brought some of the new things with them to show in their homes though Henry the seventh was a mean man he spent much gold in right ways he brought men from Italy who could paint and carve and stone and their works were bought for each grand place that he built he did much too for trade yet the English did not mourn his death End of Chapter 13 Chapter 14 of history of England in words of one syllable this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Catherine Phipps history of England in words of one syllable by Helen W. Pearson Chapter 14 Henry VIII Henry VIII now came to the throne in 1509 he had such frank free ways such good looks and skill in all sorts of games that he won all hearts at first he was well read too and would send for wise men to dying with him that he might talk with them but as he grew in years he did not grow in grace there was a great change in him and he grew hard and cold and fond of self he made war at once in Scotland and France the troops were led into Scotland by the Earl of Surrey a brave and wise man and he had with him some high born lords and brave knights the scotch army was made up of their best men with their own king King Henry II at their head they met the English at a place by the name of Floddenfield and fought all day at one time the scotch had the best of it then the English would seem to gain the day but at last the scotch found they had lost their king and they were full of grief the best and most brave of their land had lost their lives too in that sad fight so they had no more hope and were glad to make peace with England King Henry's war with France did not last long the young king thought he would like to have some of the fame of war but when one fight was fought he made peace this was known as the fight of the Spurs for it is said the French made more use of their spurs to get off than they did of their swords and ere long there came a young king to the French throne he is known as Francis I he was fond of gay feasts he had as much love for rides and games and the dance as Henry so the two gay young kings made a plan to meet and to have some good times and so they did they met near a place by the name of Adre in France the rich lords of France and England with their wives were there the tents were of silk and gold work and the dames war gowns wrought with gold and gems and the steeds wore silk cloths and there were feasts and jousts and a dance each day this was known as the field of the cloth of gold for there was so much of that rich ore shown there both in the tents and in the dress of the lords and dames there was a great man who met with the two kings at the field of the cloth of gold his name was Walsy he was a priest and was known to be such a wise man that the pope gave him the high rank cardinal a cardinal in those days was a great man he wore a long fine silk robe with fur on the edge and in the street he had a red hat on his head with a broad brim cardinal Walsy was a man who knew more than most men of that day he read greek and he built Christ church at Oxford and a great school at Ipswich with part of the wealth he got from the king but he was proud in his ways and the english thought he was to blame for the great tax that was laid on them to pay for the king's wars so some of them told the king that the cardinal spoke ill of him and made a boast of his wealth as though he were more rich and great than the king then Henry went into a hot rage and sent to seize all the wealth of the cardinal and would have cut off his head but it came to pass that the cardinal was so struck down by grief at the loss of all that he held dear that he fell ill and with last breath he said that if he had but done as much to serve God as he had done to serve his king he would not have left him in his old age the truth was that Henry sought to cast off his wife Catherine so that he might take a new one and Walsy would not help him for he knew it was a sin the king had cast his eyes on one of the queen's maids by the name of Anne Boleyn and he had made up his mind that she should be his wife he found out all at once that Catherine was not his real wife as she had been brought to the court for Prince Arthur the first born son of Henry 7th who was dead the pope would not give him leave to do this and time went on till at last a priest by the name of Thomas Cranmer said they might leave it to the wise men in the great schools who knew most of law Henry said he would have no more to do with the pope but would be the head of the church in England and would have things his own way he said that Catherine was not his wife and all the right that had bound him to her was null and void so he sent her from him and made haste to wed Anne Boleyn poor Catherine did not live but three years from that time Henry said the English must own him as the head of the church but there were some of the best men in the land who would not do this so he had the heads of two of the great men cut off though they had been his best friends these were Bishop Fisher and Sir Thomas Moore Sir Thomas Moore was one of the most wise men of the day he had been at school in Oxford and was well read and could both write and read Greek he had learned law and was said to be the first Englishman who could make a speech that would sway the hearts of men as he chose he had a home where all the best men of the day were glad to meet him and talk with him on grave things or he his wife and young folks play and sing and there he found the best joys of his life Henry had made him Chancellor of England which was the place of most high rank on things of law so when the king chose to take a new wife he had a hope that Sir Thomas Moore would help him but not all the kings in the world could have made the Chancellor do what he thought was wrong he did not wish Henry to send off his good wife Catherine of Aragon and he still held the pope as the head of the church so the king was in a rage with him and had him thrown into jail and kept him there a whole year but he would not say the king was in the right or that he was the head of the church the king then made up his mind to put him to death and at last said his head should be cut off and he would not let him see wife or child but one of his girls Margaret lay in wait on the street where he must pass as he was led to his death and run out to kiss him and to beg him to bless her those who saw it wept so this grand man lost his head and the king had it stuck on a pole on London bridge but Margaret soon made out to get it down and when she was dead it was put in the same grave with her Henry the 8th had his own way and was wed to Anne Boleyn but in time she too had to feel that the king could change to her as he had done to his first wife a new grace won him and he made out that the queen had done all sorts of bad things and then he had her head cut off on the day of her death she sent to beg that the king would be kind to her child Elizabeth her last words were to say that she had not done the bad things they said and to pray God to bless the king and the English folk and then she laid her head on the block the next day the king was wed to Jane Seymour who did not live long or might have met a worse fate she left one child who was Edward the 6th the king's fourth wife was Anne of Cleves the king did not like her looks so he soon put her out of his way but he did not kill her he gave her a house and funds for her needs and that was all then came the fifth wife Lady Catherine Howard but in a few months the king found out that she was not so good as he had thought and he made short work with her her head was cut off yet he found one more dame who did not fear to wed with him Catherine Parr did not seem to mind the risk she ran and she kept the king in a good mood so that she did not lose her head he was the first to die the time of Henry the 8th was a time of change in Germany Martin Luther stood forth to teach men that Pope or priest should have no right to break laws and there was a wise man by the name of Erasmus who wrote and taught truths that made the English see how much of wrong had crept into the Romish church some grew to be foes to the pope and said the priests had too much land and gold and that some of them led ill lives and made the poor pay too much that they might live well and not work there were some who took the part of the pope and said the priests were wise men and should be kept at ease that they might have time to teach Henry at first was on the pope side and wrote a book with his views and to show how wrong Martin Luther was but when he found that the pope would not give him leave to wed as he chose a great change of mind took place he thought that it would be a good thing for England to have her king and not the pope at the head of her church and he said to work at once to break up all the homes of the church to make the monks and the nuns turn out they would all go to work but some of them were too old or they were not strong and there were those who had to beg or die of want then he took the lands and wealth of the church to do with as he chose at the same time he would not let all read the bible as they chose and they must serve God in his way and not in their own those who were not on the side of the pope and who thought he had not the right to rule were known as Protestants and learned to read the bible to find out the true way of life the men who did not think that the homes of the church should be torn down and who still held to the pope as head of the church were known as papists King Henry made some harsh laws and had some who did not keep them burnt to death one of his worst crimes was that he had the head of the young Earl of Surrey struck off but a few days air his own death in the flames there was no one to mourn the death of such a king end of chapter 14 chapter 15 of history of England in words of one syllable this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Catherine Phipps history of England in words of one syllable chapter 15 Mary Edward the 6th was but nine years old at the death of King Henry the 8th and he was made king at once he was a mild boy and fond of his book but he was so young that of course he had to have men to rule for him those who were near kind to him and those who taught him were Protestants so there were laws made by which all the English were told that they must be Protestants too the Bible was read by all and those who stood up to preach in church had to pray in English and not in Latin the king was to be held as head of the church the priests could take wives and all who were in jail were set free for all these things the reign of Edward the 6th is thought to have been a good one for England but there were some wrong things done in this reign the Duke of Somerset who had all the say as the young king was in his care he had troops into Scotland and beat the Scots at the fight of Pinkie then Somerset said he would make peace if they would give their young Queen Mary to be Edward's wife when he was grown but Mary's kin were Catholics and they said she should not wed a Protestant so they sent her off to France some of the English soon grew to hate Somerset for his pride and they made the young king think ill of him he had torn down more than one church grand house to build a fine home which still stands in the same place and bears the name of Somerset House now there was one who was as near kin to the king as Somerset and who thought he ought to have all the rule in the land this was Lord Seymour of Sudley a brave but a bad man Somerset had him put to death but soon his foes got the king to sign for his death too the poor boy had a kind heart and did not like to sign such things and though the great lords did not love Somerset the mass of the folk did and there was great grief when it was known that he was to die he had been kind to them and had made laws that were good for England and they felt he was their friend Somerset bore his fate like a brave man said a few kind words to those who were in tears for him and then laid his head on the block the young king was not strong and by this time it grew plain to his friends that he had not long to live he had a sad, lone sort of life spite of his crown for there were few to love him and those most near to him by blood did not seem to care for him he grew more and more weak and they took him to this place and that for change of air now the one who was to reign in England in case Edward should die was the princess Mary of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon and she was a papist so that all the Protestants were full of fear for their cause the Duke of Northumberland whose name had been Earl of Warwick had a son who was wed to a young girl near kin to the king these young folks were both Protestants and Northumberland thought there might be a chance for the young wife Lady Jane Grey to have the crown of England when Edward was dead then as she was wed to his son he would rule in her name so he stayed with the young king while he was ill and got him to make a will by which he left the crown to Lady Jane Grey Edward did not live long and his death was a sad blow to the English he was so mild and good and took such pains to do what he thought right that all the land had hopes that they would have in him a good and wise king but it was the will of God that he should die and his last words to save England and to keep pure the true faith in two days Lady Jane Grey was said to be queen in London but the friends of Lady Mary held fast to her and all knew that she was the right queen there were some who would have been glad to have had the Lady Jane for she was young and fair and wise and she was a Protestant but the English had great fear of Northumberland and they knew he would rule them if his son's wife were to be queen so one and all of Northumberland's friends left him and took the part of Lady Mary and the Lady Jane who knew that a great wrong had been done in her name went back to her home with a glad heart she had borne the name of queen ten days there she might have spent her life in peace but for the plots of Northumberland Queen Mary had brought back the paper strights the folks had to pray in Latin once more and the Pope was said to be the head of the church some of the English did not like this and the Protestants felt still more fear when they found that Queen Mary was to wed Philip of Spain for he was a fierce papist grim and hard and all Protestants had great fear of him so Northumberland thought he might raise friends to fight for the Lady Jane but Mary soon put them down and had his head cut off all the chief men who had been with him met a like fate then the Queen felt she would not be safe on her throne while the Lady Jane and Lord Guildford Dudley should live so she sent them to the tower and kept them there shut up for eight months then she said that they must both be brought to the block the Lady Jane had been taught with the young King Edward and she was like him in her kind sweet ways but she had been more quick to learn and read and wrote both Latin and Greek and all the tongues in use at that day she could paint too and play when Northumberland first sought to make her claim the crown she would not for she said she had no right to it but at last with much words they got her to let them set up a claim for her when she found that she must die she was calm she wrote to her friends to take leave of them and she had to see through the bars of her cell Lord Guildford Dudley her young spouse led out to his death as she still now there to pray the corpse brought back in a cart poor young thing her fate was hard when they led her out she had kind words to say to all near her the one who kept the tower as he led her out to her doom said I pray thee give me a small thing to keep for thy sake and she gave him a book in which she wrote in Greek in Latin and in English she said to all that she had meant no wrong then she laid her fair young head on the block the new queen soon grew so harsh that the English gave her the name of Bloody Mary she would not let the word of God be read she made the priests send off their wives and did all she could to bring back the Roman Catholic church all who would not do as she chose were put to death on one day there were near three score of the first men of the land hung and their heads were stuck on poles in the streets she sent Elizabeth to jail and for a time there was fear for her life but her friends got her to a safe place then Mary was wed to Philip II king of Spain and the English did not like him he was not kind to the queen who had lost the charm of youth and he did all he could to make her hate the Protestants the queen and king knelt to the cardinal who was sent to them from Rome and said it was a great sin that England had done when she had cast off the pope's rule so at last the pope said that England might come back to the true faith the two men who did the most to help the queen bring back England to the old creed were Gardiner and Bonner they thought the true way was to burn up all who would not think as they did the first one burnt was a good man by the name of Rogers they sent him to the great square at Smithfield and he was bound to the stake and a fire lit round him his wife met him with her ten boys and there they took leave of him with tears the next one to die was Dr. Hooper Bishop of Gloucester with his last breath he said I thank God that I have had the strength to speak the truth Bishop Latimer was one of the Protestants he was an old man but Queen Mary would not spare him and sent him with a friend of his by the name of Bishop Ridley to the stake they spoke words of love and cheer to all as the flames came to them their death did much to make their friends more strong in the faith next came the wise and good Archbishop Cranmer he was a mild man and his fears made him seek to live he wrote to Queen Mary and played for his life but though he did vow that he would be a papist if she would spare him she sent him to be burned when they had bound him to the stake he was seen to stretch out his right hand in the flame that it might burn first for he said that hand had done false work in that it wrote through fear what he did not mean he kept up a brave heart through the fire and was heard to pray to God and praise him the way in which he bore his death made all feel for him and there was a light lit in England that day which did not soon go out Queen Mary went to war with France to please Philip but she lost the day and the French took back Calais her death came in the same year in which she lost Calais and she had been queen but five years she said when she was dead they would find the word Calais on her heart its loss had been such a grief to her End of Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Elizabeth was the child of Anne Boleyn and she was known as a Protestant she had been well taught and knew both Latin and Greek the first thing she did was to set free all the Protestants who were in the jails then she brought back the Bible and had men pray in English in church when Elizabeth rode through London to be made Queen at Westminster Abbey there was great joy and all sorts of fine shows for her the streets were gay with flags and here and there an arch was made and bound with wreaths as the Queen rode neath one of these a boy was let down from cords who gave the Queen a fine Bible and then was drawn up once more the Queen was seen to kiss this Bible and press it to her heart and she said it was the gift most dear to her of all she had had that day Queen Elizabeth took Wisemen to help her rule the land and with their aid England was at rest and trade and all the arts of peace had a chance to grow the Queen had a dread of war and in all her reign did what she could to keep her land free from it in her reign Protestants came from lands they might be burnt for their faith and made their homes in England some could spin and weave and dye cloth and as they set up the work of their trades in their new homes the English learnt new arts you know there was a fair young Queen of Scotland by the name of Mary whom they had sought to wed to Edward VI she had been sent to France where she had wed the young King of France but he did not live long then the young Queen of Scots in England her life in France had been so gay that she did not love her new home or its folks she took her French friends with her and did not care for grave things she sought to feast and dance and sing with her gay friends the land had grown Protestant while she had been gone and this did not please her at last there was a war of Protestant and Papist in her land and in the end the folks said let them be free to be Protestants and serve God in the way they chose but she had to say that if she had a child it should be brought up in the Protestant faith Mary had wed one of her own kin Henry Stewart known as Lord Darnley and they had one son by the name of James Mary did not care for Darnley but chose one Bothwell for a friend so when Darnley was found slain it was thought that the vile plant to kill him was hers though she had been at a ball at the time and when she chose to wed with Bothwell in three months all were sure of her guilt and the Scots rose and said they would not have such a queen then there was more war and Mary was put in jail but by help of one of her friends she got out and sought to be queen once more but the Scots would not hear of it and they made the child James their king with Lord Murray and some more lords to rule for him Mary went to England then to see if Elizabeth would help her to get her crown back once more and she wrote to the kings of France and Spain to say that if they would help they might get England as well as Scotland back to the Pope's rule she wrote to the Pope that if they could put Elizabeth out of the way all would be well at this time the Protestants in all lands were not left free to serve God in their own way and were put to death for slight cause all this went to rouse the hearts of the Protestant English and to make them fear the plots of Mary the Puritans, one and all were her foes and such should be put to death at this time too to place what is known as the massacre of Saint Bartholomew a crime that has left a stain on the fair fame of France on the day kept for Saint Bartholomew all the great heads of the Protestant church were brought to Paris to see their young chief the king of Navarre wed to the princess Marguerite the king of France Charles IX the young man led by the fierce Catholics to believe that there was a plot to take his life gave a sign that when Abel should toll the great force should fall on the Protestants and slay them all at once when the hour was close at hand the king was led to a place where he could see the sad work through all one night and two days the Protestants were shot men, their wives and babes and were flung out in the streets till the stones were red with blood in all France the same vile deeds were done from that day the king did not know an hour's peace he would cry out that he saw the Huguenots fall and their groans were at all times in his ears he did not live but a year from those days of crime and blood in England the news of such a deed came with a great shock to all and the court wore black for a sign of their grief and just then a real plot was found out that put an end to all hope for Mary, Queen of Scots some young men with weak heads with a Jesuit priest at their head made a plan to kill the queen they're so proud of this plan that they got someone to paint them all but there was one of them who told all to one of Elizabeth's chief men and then the whole plot was known the men were caught and Mary was told that all had been found out Elizabeth was told that while she kept Mary she held the wolf that would some day kill her they brought out the Queen of Scots to try her she said that each charge was false and that she did not write what was shown in court but it was known to have been done by her hand Queen Elizabeth sent word to Parliament to know if they could not find some way to save Mary's life but they said no there was no help for it Mary must die at last the Queen who felt that the plots were real and that she could not be sure of her own life if she let Mary live sent word that it might be that would sign the writ of death the Queen of Scots felt sure that her time had now come and she wrote to Elizabeth to ask three things first that her grave might be in France then that her head might be cut off in the sight of all and third that all who had been her friends should have what she left to them and be let go to their homes in peace it is said that Elizabeth shed tears as she read this she did not write to Mary she put off from day to day the sad work and it is said was loathe at last to sign her name to the writ of death but at last it was done Mary on the last night read her will and went to bed and slept some hours then she rose and spent the rest of the time to the break of day on her knees at eight she was dressed in her best clothes and took leave of those who were with her she went downstairs with the man who was sent for her with her Bible and crossing her hands two of her maids and four of her men were with her in the hall was a low block two feet from the ground with a black cloth thrown on it the hall was full and on one side of the blocks stood the headsman in a black suit while they read her doom to her she sat on a stool when they were done she said once more that the charge of guilt was false and that all the crimes laid to her were part of a state plot to get her out of the way she said she would die in the Catholic faith one of her maids put a cloth on her face and she laid her head on the block and said more than once in Latin into thy hands, O Lord when her head was cut off and held up it was seen that her hair was quite gray she had borne her fate in a brave sweet way and the fame of the fair face that had long grown worn and sad with years and grief is still kept fresh and light in song and tales to this day Philip of Spain sought to wed with Elizabeth but she would not hear of it then one of the sons of the old Queen of France was thought of for her the Queen did not say no to this for she sought to keep friends with France at last she said she would wed no one and she thought she could rule the land as well the Queen knew that the best way to make England strong was to have good ships so that she could meet her foes and fight them on the sea and not let them land on her shores she had some wise men to sail her ships for her and they went to strange lands and brought back tales of the life there and men and things they had found Sir Francis Drake was one of these and Sir Walter Raleigh who could fight on the land or take the lead of a ship at sea was one of the great men of the time he took out the first folks to North America and they gave the name of Virginia to their homes he first brought home from South America a root which is much in use for food and a weed which meant smoke and chew the first time they saw Sir Walter smoke in England they thought they sought to put him out Queen Elizabeth had her faults in those days it was not thought wrong for those unthrones to say what they did not mean and so men could not trust the word of the Queen or her chief Lord Burley at all times if they thought it best for the land they would say that they would do what they did not mean to do Elizabeth was small it is said but made out by her grand ways to look the Queen as age came on she grew more and more fond of dress she wore big hoops and tall ruffs of lace and gems strewn on her robes she is said to have had more than ten score of gowns and a score and a half of wigs she had some grand men in her court and Philip Sydney was one there was great grief when he met his death in Holland where the Queen had sent some troops to help the Protestants to wash hands of Philip of Spain as Sydney road faint with thirst from the field of the fight someone brought him a drink and a cup just as he went to raise it to his mouth he saw a poor man worse hurt than he who kept a sad gaze on the cup Sydney put the drink from him and said take it friend thy need is more than mine Philip of Spain at this time got up a great fleet come down on England and bring it back to the rule of the Pope the Queen heard of the plan and sent out to one of a great seaman who had been round to the world whose name was Admiral Drake he set sail for the port of Cadiz and took and burnt scores of the Spanish ships and that kept them back for a whole year but in that time they had a great force and gave it the name of the invincible Armada for they felt sure they could not be beat the heart of all England was like the heart of one man to rise up and beat back this bold foe from their shores the great mass of the Catholics were true to their land and both sides of the Thames were made strong with forts and all were in wait for the proud Spanish fleet the Queen rode out on a white horse and made a speech to the brave troops and was heard with cheers of joy the Spanish Armada with its ships set in the form of a half moon and it was of such great size that it was more than six miles broad but the English were soon on it and they took all the ships that got out of the half moon one night the bold Drake sent eight fire ships right in the midst of it then the Spaniards strove to get to sea but the English gave them chase and then there came a great storm just as the Armada went through the Straits of Dover this drove the ships from their course and broke them to bits so that the coasts of Ireland and Scotland were strewn with their wrecks the English felt that God had come to their help and that wind and storm had fought for them Lord Lester who had been a great friend of the Queens and had at times thought he could get her for his wife was dead the first stepson the Earl of Essex a brave young man for her best friend he had the ill luck at last not to please her and she sent him to rule Ireland from the harsh way she wrote to him he thought he must have some foes at court so he did not wait for leave but came home and went straight to the Queen she was in a rage and would not hear him for she was vain who was proud and hurt broke his sword in her sight and flung it from him and what was worse he got his friends to stand up in a sort of mob for his rights this made the Queens send him to his house she told him to stay there but she still felt for him for when he was ill she sent him broth and shed tears for him he spent his time with his books but when he found that the Queen took from him some of his rights he grew in a rage and said she was vain and old and no more straight in mind than in her form some of the court dames were glad to catch up these words and tell them to the Queen but more than this Essex and some of his friends laid a plot to take the Queen and make her change her head men and send some from her this was found out and Essex was sent for but he made out that he was ill then one day he made out with a few friends with the cry for the Queen for the Queen a plot is laid for my life but no one came to their help and the Earl got back to his house where the troops came to take him to the tower but the Queen still had love for him and thought she would keep him there till he sent some word or sign to her but he did not and she thought he was too proud to beg for her grace and at last she set her name so Essex lost his head on the block but when he was dead the Queen found that he had sent her a ring by one of the court dames and that this ring got in the hands of one who was a foe to Essex and kept it back when the one who had done this was sick to death she sent for the Queen and gave her the ring and told her all the heart of the Queen gave way and from that time she grew all at once old and weak she would not lie down but sat up till she sank in death she did not speak for days till at last she told the Archbishop to pray for her and so death came to her who had been so brave and strong in 1603 Shakespeare wrote his great plays in the time of Queen Elizabeth End of Chapter 16 Chapter 17 of History of England in words of one syllable This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Catherine Phipps History of England in words of one syllable by Helen W. Pearson Chapter 17 James I The heir to the throne was now the son of Mary, Queen of Scots He was the sixth James who had been King of Scotland and he had been brought up in a strict way by the Scotch Puritans He knew books but not courtways and he had no grace He could not bear to see a drawn sword and had such a fear that someone would kill him that he wore a dress or made thick with wool which did not lend much style to his form The English were not proud of their new king though it was a great thing for England and Scotland to have the same man to rule them at last for it put an end to their wars James had read much and was more wise than men thought He did not like the Puritans as well as the English church for he thought that it was best to fix a form by which men should pray and not for each one to pray in his own words but he could not change the Scots all at once and he set wise men to work on the Bible to make it all as plain and clear as it could be But there were some of the Catholics at this time who had got up a plot to get rid of the Protestants and bring back the Pope They were to blow up the House of Parliament on the day when it met They laid a mine beneath it and put kegs of their stuff there and hid them with sticks of wood But one of these men had a friend in Parliament whom he did not want to die so he wrote to him in such a way that he woke fears in the one who read it and search was made in the vaults There they found the kegs of stuff in place to blow all up and a man with a torch to set fire to the train This man, whose name was Guy Fawkes told all when they had laid hold of him Some of those who had been in the plot made out to get from England All the land gave thanks that the plot was brought to naught For a long time that day, 5th of November was kept and fireworks set off and a shape like that of Guy Fawkes burnt It is known as Guy Fawkes Day Henry, Prince of Wales was a fine youth, fond of ships and apt to talk of wars The hopes of England were set on him but he grew ill and his death was a great blow to all King James chose friends for their good looks and not for their good traits of mind and heart To one of them, the Duke of Buckingham he gave the pet name of Stiney and he gave him his son Charles to bring up When Charles was grown they sought to get the child of the King of Spain for his wife So Stiney took the young Prince to see her and the two went in plain clothes and took the plain name of Smith so that none should know them But when they got to Madrid they found that the young girl could not be seen as the rules of the Spanish court were most strict Charles, who had seen the bright eyes of Henrietta Maria of France on his way said he would take her for his wife But ere he did this the death of James I came to pass in the year 1625 There had not been much peace in Scotland in this rain as he strove to make all there use the forms of the new English church One of the worst things he did was to keep Sir Walter Raleigh in the tower for years and at last to cut off his head James was not a man of strict truth he thought that kings might lie and he gave such lies the name of Kingcraft End of Chapter 17 Chapter 18 of the history of England in words of one syllable This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Rita Butros The History of England in words of one syllable by Helen W. Pearson Chapter 18 Charles I Charles I had good looks and grace of Maine with none of the odd ways and tricks of James so that the English were glad to hail him as king For some years all was peace but there were some who did not like his friend the Duke of Buckingham and thought he had too much to say and they did not like to have a queen who was a papist The Puritans did not want the rules of the Church of England and there was a man by the name of Dr. Laud who was sent to each church to put these rules in force Some went off to America where they could serve God in their own way but those who were left did not keep still Then the king had need of gold and chose ways to raise it that the folks did not think just In old times King Alfred had made a tax to build ships It was known as a ship tax but in time the funds were put to all sorts of use Then too gold was got from fines when a man was brought up for a fault they brought him to a room known as a star chamber and he had to pay a good sum to get free Parliament would not give the king gold he broke it up and sent through the land to raise funds by the ship tax but there were some who would not pay it They said the king broke the laws when he sought to reign with no parliament but King Charles would not call a parliament for ten years The folks said the worst times had come back when kings could rob the poor Buckingham had met his death by a stab to the heart from the hands of a man by the name of Felton Charles had sent help to the French Protestants at Rochelle which was in a state of siege Buckingham was to have led the troops which did not please the English at all He was a proud cold man and had not made friends of them All thought that the king would do well now the bad friend was gone but he went on to try and make the Scots come back to the church He had a hard time too in Ireland and at last all those who did not like him made a league to fight him and he had to call his parliament at last to raise funds They were not in a mood to grant boons They put an end at once and the court of the star chamber and they threw the king's two great friends laud and strafford into jail The Earl of Strafford had charge in Ireland and had kept strict rule there He was thought a hard man and he sought to make the king rule with a strong hand The parliament said he should have his head cut off and not do it save in the king's name At first Charles stood out and would not give up his dear friend but there was such a rage at this that the queen with tears pleaded with the king to save all and put his name to the writ of death He did so but did not cease to mourn the act till the end of his life The parliament took things more and more and some of them went on to rail at the king in such a way that Charles went there to take five men who were the worst of the lot But by some means these men had heard of it and were not there and the Londoners rose up in a great mob to cry down the king The queen with the princess Mary went to Holland and there was a match made for Charles with the Prince of Orange Then the queen bought stacks of guns for the troops of King Charles for there was war now with the king and his parliament Those who held with the king were known as Cavaliers and those who were not with him had the name of Puritans or round heads They got this last name from the way in which they wore their hair It was the mode in that day to have the locks long but they chose to have their hair cut short round their heads The Puritans had a hate for all the forms of the Church of England and they were for the most part strict and grave folks who did not care for feasts or fine clothes While the Cavaliers though they were fond of fine dress were bold and brave and fond of a good time Prince Rupert led the King's troops He was a brave young man but was apt to think he had won the day ere the work was half done At first the King's troops who knew most of the arts of war got the best of it but there was one man on the side of the Puritans by the name of Oliver Cromwell who made it plain that he was born to lead men From the time he was put at the head of the Puritans they won their cause The three chief fights were Edge Hill, Marston Moore and Naysby The Puritans had all things their own way Archbishop Laud was put to death and at the same time they put out the priests and put their own men in and would not keep in use the book from which the folks had been want to pray They did not like such fine things and would smash all the glass of rich hues and use the font for a trough and put their steeds in the church King Charles was in such a sad case he thought he might find friends with the Scots as he had been born in Scotland but they did not prove friends and gave him up for a sum of gold to the English So Charles was now in the hands of the long parliament which did not wish to have a king at all The king would have done much to please them but there was no end to the things this long parliament chose to ask At last Oliver Cromwell sent one of his men to take the king out of the hands of parliament and he set to work to try him First he sent one of his men to turn out all in parliament who would not do his will Then he made a sort of court to try the king They brought all kinds of things to his charge but as Charles thought they had no right to try him he would not speak So they said that in three days he should have his head cut off He bore all in a meek calm way and was heard to pray for his foes The queen was in France and his children Elizabeth, 12 years old and Henry of Five were brought to see him the night air he was to die He took his boy on his knee and told him to mark what he said and to mind not to set up for a king as long as Prince Charles and Prince James should live The boy said with tears I will be torn to bits first Then there was not but for the king to kiss and bless them and give them his last goodbye The next day was January 30th 1649 They let the king have bishop Juson to read and pray with him Then he was led out to a place hung with black and was heard to pray God to bless those who had been the cause of his death He did not fear to die but he did not wish to die hard He said to one near take care that they do not put me to pain He told the headsman I will pray a short time and then thrust out my hands and that was to be the sign to strike He said to bishop Juson I have a good cause and a God of grace on my side The bishop told him he had but one more stage to go in this world and that was a hard one but it was short and would take him a long way all the way from this earth up to the home of the blessed The king knelt down laid his head on the block and spread out his hands and his head was struck off at one blow and held up in the sight of all a great groan burst from the crowd He was put in a tomb at the St. George Chapel Windsor by four friends in the dead of night It was a great shock to the scots when they knew the death of their king and they sent word to the young prince Charles that if he would come to them they would set him on the throne Charles came but he found that the scotch were too strict and dull to suit him The things that made the joys of his life were sins in their eyes Still they gave him their help and some of the English Cavaliers came to his aid They put the crown on his head at scone and he took the head of the army and went on to sterling Oliver Cromwell was ill in bed but when he heard of this march he got out of bed in no time and went to work with a will He got in the rear of the troops of Charles and cut them off from Scotland There was not for them to do then but to go on to England Then Oliver came up to them at quick speed and a great fight took place at Worchester The scotch fought in such a brave way that it took five hours for Cromwell to beat them Charles fled in the night with some of his men to the house of a Catholic dame There he had his hair cut off and went out at break of day as if to his work with the help of a poor man and with an axe in his hands Some men whose work was to cut wood went with him and they made a bed for him in the woods From there he got on and hid at times in barns Once he had to climb up into a fine old oak and hide in the leaves for he heard Cromwell's troops ride by and he could hear from his perch in the woods as they went on and beat the boughs Then he had to walk and walk for more than one long day and once when his foes gave chase to him there was a young girl by the name of Miss Lane who let him ride on the same horse with her and strove to pass him off as a youth she had to serve her But when they got to an inn he ran a great risk for he did not know to turn a spit when the cook bad him But he got off safe and a boat took him to France where the queen then dwelt Elizabeth and Henry had been sent to the Isle of Wight The young girl was seen to pine day by day and one morn they found her dead with her face laid on the word of God which she held in her hand Then Henry was sent to be with the queen in France James of York the son who was next in age to Charles II was in Holland But at last the two went into the French ranks to learn the art of war Oliver Cromwell in the meantime had kept up his rule he put down the Irish with a strong hand and when he did not want the long parliament he just went in with some troops and broke it up then he had a parliament of his own made up of a few men who would do as he bad them the head man had the name of bare bones so this was known as the bare bones parliament Oliver Cromwell did not have the name of a king but his reign was like one for five years with the same might as a real king and he was not a bad man to rule England for he thought it was God's work and that God meant him to do it though he made war on a king and put him to death at last he thought he was right he felt that he was sent from the Lord to fight with his Bible and his sword the Cavaliers had a hard time with him and he made them pay fines and some lost their lands some went to Holland or France and sent their wives home now and then to get the rents Cromwell was stern but he sought to be just and he had to do as he did to keep the reins in his own hand the Cavaliers could no more have their own way in church so they met in woods and caves and vaults Cromwell's death came at the end of five years and his son Richard had not the same strength of mind and strong will he found he could not rule England so he gave it up and went home to his own house the folks gave him the name of Tumble Down Dick no one knew then what was the best move to make till General Monk who was at the head of the army said they had best bring back the king so the Parliament sent word to Charles II and a fleet went to fetch him he came and rode through London streets which were hung with green bows and silk flags and all were glad to see him back but in the midst of the joy came the death of Prince Henry and then of the Princess Mary who had been the wife of William of Orange she left one son of whom you will hear in time then there was more change in all ways in each church the Puritans gave way once more to those of the Church of England and Juxon who had been with Charles I at his death was made Archbishop the troops of Cromwell broke up all but one band of men whom the king took as his guards in the end though they had brought back Charles Puritans and Cavaliers both felt that they had cause to find fault each thought the king should do more for him and each had an axe of his own to grind so Cavalier and Roundhead grew to have new names and were known as Tory and Wig a man had need to be both strong and wise to have dealt so as to please all and Charles was a man who sought most to please his own self he was bright but not wise or good he was full of wit and said droll things but he did not keep his word and none could trust him he had a set of friends who were a shame to his court but he did not care that they made the time pass so that he should not be dull these friends took gold from the French king to get Charles not to help the Dutch in their war with the French then the Dutch went to war with the English for this and there were some sea fights in which James, Duke of York fought in a brave way in the year 1665 there was a sad plague in London folks were struck with it in a strange way if they went near those ill with it and they would die in a few hours when the plague was in a house the door was shut and a cross in red chalk put on it as a sign that none should go out or in food was set outside of the door so the folks could get it which would stop at the house the men who drove it would call bring out your dead and when a corpse was brought out it was born off and thrown in a deep long ditch at last by the grace of God this sad pest left London and has not come since the next year there was a great fire in London which burnt down whole streets St. Paul's Cathedral was burnt in this fire at last they had to stop it this way they blew up all that stood in the course of the flames so that there was a space that the fire could not leap in Scotland the king sought once more to make them use the mode of the Church of England then the Scots would not go to church but met on hills and moors troops were sent to break this up and there were sad scenes the king's men were the most strong and did harsh things and vile acts were done Charles had no air and the Duke of York was a Catholic so there was a plot known as the Rye House Plot to kill him so that the throne might go to the Duke of Monmouth this young man was the son of King Charles and a girl to whom he had not been wed this plot was found out the head men lost their lives and Monmouth fled to Holland Charles would let men preach to him and hear what they said of his life with a smile but he did not leave off his bad ways he spent the last Sunday of his life at play with his gay friends at cards then he had a stroke and sent for a Catholic priest so it came out that he had been a Catholic all his life but had not let it be known lust he should lose his crown in this reign there were two great books brought out John Milton who had lost his sight wrote Paradise Lost and John Bunyan a poor man whose work was to mend pots and pans wrote The Pilgrim's Progress End of Chapter 18 Chapter 19 of History of England in Words of One Syllable this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Catherine Phipps History of England in Words of One Syllable by Helen W. Pearson Chapter 19 James II James II was at least so far true in that he made his faith known he was a Catholic and he had not the grace by which Charles II had won English hearts he was grave, sad and stern the Duke of Monmouth came back and found some to call him king in the west of England groups of girls in white met him with wreaths but that did not help him win his cause he was at Segemoor and fled he was found in a smock frock in a ditch they took him to London where the court went on to try him and he was hung James was most harsh with all who had lent aid to Monmouth he sent a man by the name of Jeffries to try them all and most were hung this man was so fierce and coarse that his trip is known since as the bloody assize so the reign of James II was harsh from the first he gave the best posts in the church and state to Roman Catholics and the Protestants saw this with more and more fear James had no son but he had two girls the Princess Mary who was wed to the young Prince of Orange and Anne who was the wife of Prince George of Denmark he was a dull man and it was the mode to laugh at him but he had a son of whom there was much hope but James II took it in his head to take a new wife a princess from Italy and a Roman Catholic so when she had a son the Protestants who did not want more Catholic kings said they thought that this child was not the true son of the king and queen and all the land was in a sad state then William of Orange came and crowds went at once on his side till James saw that it was not safe for his wife and child in England so he sent them to France and stayed on for a while when a man had gone on the side of the Prince of Orange tears came in his eyes and he said God help me my own child leaves me so he got off in plain clothes and went to France where he had Saint-Germain for a home it was on the 4th of November 1688 William of Orange set his foot on shore and from that time came the change known as the English Revolution Parliament gave the crown to William and Mary but all the Roman Catholics were still of course for James they were known as Jacobites they thought that no one had a right to have his place and they would not take the oath to serve the new rule Archbishop Sandcroft, Bishop Kerr and some more would not take the oath but gave up all their wealth and their high posts and led lives of hard work and want from time to time James strove to get his crown back and Louis, King of France gave him aid but all in vain as most of his friends the Roman Catholics were in Ireland he went there to fight he got on well in the south but in the north they would not help him he laid siege to Londonderry but it held out for more than three months so that all were like to die for want of food then England came to their aid William came with troops and there the two met and fought on the banks of the Boine 1690 James was put to root and had to leave Ireland all his friends there paid dear for the aid they gave him in the meantime while William of Orange fought the French in Holland there was great grief at the death of Mary from smallpox she had left no child Parliament said that William could be king and on his death Princess Anne should be queen and they made an act that no Roman Catholic who was wed to a Roman Catholic should sit on England's throne the English Tories did not like this act as they had not much love for King William he was a thin spare man with sharp rough ways he was not in good health and that may have made him more sharp he kept the reins though with a strong hand but he was at war with France all the time then there was a great war at this time as to who should have the Spanish throne and of course William was not on the French side but ere he went out to fight in this fresh war as he rode one day his horse trod in a molehill and threw him this hurt his weak chest so much that he did not live but a few days the Jacobins were glad of his death End of Chapter 19 Chapter 20 of History of England in words of one syllable this is a Librebox recording all Librebox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit Librebox.org History of England in words of one syllable by Helen W. Pearson Chapter 20 Queen Annie and the Georges Annie was made Queen on the death of William III she met well but she was weak and let her friends rule her the one who could do as she chose with her was Sarah Jennings who was the wife of a man in the troops by the name of John Churchill this man was so brave he was in time made appear the Duke of Marlborough though Annie was on the throne the Duchess was the real Queen the Duke went out with the troops to fight the French so that they should not get the throne of Spain the English took Gibraltar and have kept it from that time Marlborough with the German Prince Eugene beat the French in a great fight at Blinheim for this the Queen gave him a grand place and a fine house to which they gave the name of Blinheim Marlborough won more fights and his wife took on more heirs and grew so proud that she thought that the Queen could not get on saved by her help at times she brought the poor Queen to tears by her harsh words for she sought to rule her in all things at last the Queen could bear it no more she broke with her friend the Duchess and brought Marlborough back in the midst of his fame and so she was set free from her bonds there were some who thought it time to end the war with France but the Wigs did not like to give it up while England won Marlborough did not keep his health long for it was a great blow to him to be brought back in the midst of his fame in the time of Annie the Parliament of Scotland and that of England were made one this did not please some of the Scots and they went on the side of the Jacobites if the young James Third as he was known by the Jacobites would have sworn to join the English Church he might have had a chance to reign but he was too strong in his faith so Annie would not help him in Queen Annie's time there was some great men who wrote books that we read to this day Pope wrote his verse then and there was one book that all young folks read now the name of it is Robinson Caruso Queen Annie had a hard time with her Tory friends she was mild and fond of peace but they would not let her have it the stroke which was the cause of her death is said to have been brought on by a fierce scene with them tea came in use in Annie's reign it was brought from China it was the mode to drink it out of small cups clear and thin as an eggshell Mr. Addison wrote in his reign a news sheet once a week which held up to scorn today the name of it was the spectator you know the princess Sophia had wed the Elector of Hanover and she was to have the throne when Annie was dead but she had been the first to die so her son George was now the heir he did not care much for it he did not know of his birth that he is said to have stayed at home for days in hopes that the English would take James Stewart for their king but they did not so at last he had to set out he did not know much English and had to talk bad Latin or French he was on bad terms with her and had shut her up in a great house like a jail in Germany he had a son George who had a bright young wife Caroline of Anne's batch but the king did not seem fond of them and did not let them stay long in England the Jacobins who had made no move in the right time to get the throne for James Stewart rose when it was too late the white rose was the Jacobite Mark and they wore it when they fought two fights on the same day one in England and one in Scotland the first was at Sheriff Muir and was left in such doubt a song of it in this wise some say that we won and some say that they won some say that none won at Amman but of one thing I'm sure that at Sheriff Muir a fight there was that I saw and we ran and they ran and we ran and they ran away Mon the English fight was at Preston and the Jacobites lost and were for the most part thrown in jail so that when James Stewart who was known as the Chevalier came to land he found no friends and had to go back to Italy where he spent the rest of his life the Jacobins were sent to London and three of them had their heads cut off the wife of the Earl of Nithsdale made out to save him she went to see him in the tower and took a tall dame with her who wore two sets of clothes this dame went off then when it was time for a change of guard the Earl put on the clothes and left and with the hood low on his face went out the wife stayed for a while and went on with her talk as though the Earl were there till the time came when it was her want to leave him then she too went out and met her lord and they hid till they could get to France England grew in wealth while George I was king in India towns spring up where there had been but a house of trade here and there but the English did not like George I and he was not fond of them he spent most of his time in Hanover as he drove there in his coach one day someone threw in a note to him while he read it he had a stroke and was dead in a few hours someone said that note spoke of his sins to his wife whom death freed in the house where he had shut her up long the death of George I was in 1725 there was a change in the mode of dress in this rain the wigs were worn small and young men wore their own hair with a sort of white dust on it and a long tail at the back known as a cue the dames wore their hair in a high pile on the tops of their heads with the same white dust on it and they had great hoops and high heels to their shoes they thought too a black patch on the face made them look more fair all took snuff in those days so a fine rich snuff box was part of one's wealth the reign of George II was full of wars he was the last king of England who was in a fight this was at Fontenoy and was part of a great war to fix who should be emperor of Germany France and England were not on the same sides Charles Edward Stuart the son of James who had been known as the chevalier thought there might now be a chance for him to get back the crown of his race he was a young man of fine looks and when he stepped on scotch oil he won all hearts and the Scots brought their clans to fight for him so that he soon was at the head of a great force with which he took the town of Edinburgh most of the English troops were off in Germany so he won the fight at Preston Pans and took up his march straight on into England there was a great fight for the clans in their plads with long swords and strange speech were like some wild tribe to the London folks they might have swept all in their way if they had not grown so homesick in the strange land that Charles Edward had to let them turn back to their hills once more the French troops got back in time to chase them and they lost men each day but they made a stand at the heath of Culloden there there was a great route and the prince had to fly for his life and hid till he could find a way back to France the Duke of Cumberland was not mild with those he took in this fight all those who had lent aid to the young prince were put to death at Carlyle for the most part this rise was known as the Rebellion of the 45 as it took place in 1745 there were wars by sea and land in the reign of George II in America where some of the French and English had found homes they fought and had a hard time and the Redmen were now on this side and now on that in the East Indies too the French and English had made ports of trade but all at once the Indians came down on Calcutta the English who could got off on ships but those who could not were shut up in a small room in the most hot time of the year there were 146 of them in that place with no air and were in such a crush that they could not breathe when dawn came not much more than a score had life left in them this is known as the Black Hole of Calcutta but next year England with Colonel Clive won back Calcutta and at last made the French leave India the death of George II came when he was quite an old man his son Frederick was dead too so his grandson George III came to the throne End of Chapter 20